It would have amounted to economic self-delusion of the worst kind if the Federal government had failed to take into account the failure of this year’s budget, largely on account of the shortfall in crude shipments while preparing next year’s budget proposals. By July, revenue shortfall for 2013 had already reached N686bn and are projected to get close to N1 trillion by year end. So instead of N4.925bn proposed for 2013, the nation will be extremely fortunate if N4tn is received. Thus, while the 2014 proposed budget is lower than the 2013 appropriation, it is N495bn more than what can be reasonably expected this year.

Governor Theodore Orji of Abia State in Umuahia, weekend, said the continued support for President Goodluck Jonathan by the people of the South East geo political zone was borne out of their belief in the indivisibility of Nigeria and the survival of democracy.

Gover-nor Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo State, former Governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel and other leaders of Labour Party, LP, have moved against Governor Ibikunle Amosun, saying he must go in 2015.

As the world marks the International Right to Know Day, Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, has urged the government of President Goodluck Jonathan to drop threat of attacks against social media, as “any such threat can only continue to strangle freedom of expression and limit the accountability of government.”

Gunmen suspected to be Boko Haram sect members yesterday went on rampage in Gujba community, Yobe state where they opened fire on the students

Cyber crime does not respect geographical location; it knows no boundaries, religion or nationality. Cyber criminals attack and spread across the whole world in a matter of minutes, sparing no one.

No fewer than 33 persons were feared dead in a fresh outbreak of fighting between suspected Fulani herdsmen and native farmers in Agatu Local Government Area of Benue State.

“The report of the 14 Nigerian banks which had been appointed as Asset Managers of Nigeria’s reserves was carried on the back page of The Guardian Newspaper of the 5th of October 2006. The report confirmed that “already deposits worth $7bn representing part of the apex bank’s share of foreign reserves estimated at about $38bn had been released to the consortium of bankers, according to the CBN Head of Corporate Affairs, Mr. Festus Odoko”.

The project is geared towards creating a commercial hub for the entire eastern and south-south regions of the country. It is designed to stimulate the urban renewal of Aba city, by providing a structured facility where trading and other commercial activities can be done in an orderly manner. Presently in Aba, every nook and cranny including the roads, drainages and streets, are trading posts. This project is an attempt to sanitise the city by giving the people of Aba a dignified trading centre, which from a survey conducted by us, the traders and dwellers in the city are eager to have it operational.

As the President of the Nigerian council of Registered Insurance Brokers, NCRIB, Mrs. Laide Osijo, gets set to bow out from office, she has said that her tenure as the president of the Council was successful.

The Federal Government, yesterday, sent to Lufthansa Pilot Training Institute, Germany, 20 commercial licensed pilots for jet/type-rating training.

CHINUA Achebe in his book, There Was A Country , wrote: ” Why has the war not been discussed, or taught to the young, over 40 years after its end?’ History, we were taught, is the story of past events.

Withholding Tax is an advance payment of income tax. In principle, WHT is a payment on account of the ultimate income tax liability of the taxpayer or company. Withholding tax is not a separate tax on its own and does not confer an exemption from the filing of annual tax returns by the company which had suffered WHT. The tax is normally to be deducted at source when a payment is to be made to the beneficiary.

MEMBERS of the House of Representatives, yesterday, differed on whether the House should constitute an investigative enquiry into allegations levelled against the Federal Government by the Alhaji Kawu Baraje-led Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, that due to massive looting of the treasury, government was unable to allocate funds to states.

There is no country that can attain meaningful development without quality statistics to address its socio-economic challenges.

This is coming from the World Bank Country Director, Ms Marie-Francoise Marie-Nelly, at the opening of a two-day National Statistical User Satisfaction End-line workshop organised by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in Abuja.